About Me

Every women should have a place to go back when life overwhelms her, then again there are some of us who has no place to go back. Who aches for that place where we spend wonderful years growing up,a place that is so near yet so far away. When going back is not possible then you could open that little chest, like the one they sell at Ikea with so many small drawers that hold your memories, your dreams, your hopes and the story of your life. This is my story. It is not remarkable, may be just a plain ordinary story, but my soul is there and I am inviting you to be a part of that story.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Avial

The story of how Avial was invented is historical. But how it can also become a disaster is history.We had a malayalee cook in the medical school hostel and after begging him for ever, he promised to make avial.. I can still recall vividly, the walk to the hostel mess anticipating a nice malayalee lunch. I took a huge serving of avial with my rice.I sat down to eat and the avial looked nice and yummy..I mixed rice and avial and placed in my mouth and the whole thing came out faster than Saddam's scud. It was BITTER.. The cook decided to follow the word avial literally and added all the vege available including Bitter gourd!!!

The original recipe calls for yams and colocasia.. Where I stay neither is available so I make do without it.

3 potatoes, each cut in to 8 pieces2 carrots, cut in to 1/2 inch roundshandful of green beans cut in to one inch piece

In a pot add the cut vege and 1 cup water, cook till the veg is almost done. Grind the coconut, greenchilli and garlic fine and add it to the cooked vege, along with salt, cumin powder and turmeric. Reduce the fire and cook slowly, swirling the pan once in a while to mix.. After abt 10 mints, take it off from the fire, add the curry leaf, coconut oil and yougurt, while the vege is hot.. mix well and enjoy with rice

yes jay..it is the best of wht Kerala can offer in one dish..I hated it when mother made it.. She is stingy by birth...and would add tamarind instead of yogurt..then save on the coconut and then thee oil.. resulting in a curry tht looked like avial, but tasted awful. My grandma made the best avial in the whole world!!!

I live in a small white community.. I can't get any normal ingredients for avial...but that doesn't mean i shouldn't make it..so improvise.. it taste yummy..and yes in our part of kerala..we use yogurt for puli..

hi IC, i just happened to see this post on aviyal.as its name implies, aviyal is literally an aviyal. you can make it with everything. but, bittergourd is ok, if you add just a small piece, just for the flavour. drumstick is another 'must' for us to make the 'perfect' aviyal. but, we never use potatoes. it makes me feel gooey to think of potato or chembu in aviyal. chena is integral. so also, carrots. it gives colour. add some beets, you get wonderful red aviyal. i love it, though rajan (my hubs), hates it. it you want dry aviyal (sadya aviyal), don't overcook veggies. don't grind coconut finely, but only coarsely. add minimum water. mix the almost dry coconut mix, stir vigoously and add coconut oil in the end.